Wicked Game
by Carol
Summary: Devil's Silver #6. Nothing can ever be easy for Darien, including a marriage proposal to Claire
1. Default Chapter

Devil's Silver #6 Wicked Game

Devil's Silver #6 Wicked Game

By Carol M.

Summary: Nothing can ever be easy for Darien, including a wedding proposal to Claire 

Spoilers: All the eppies just to be safe

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: I dont own them, I just love them

Author's Note: Don't let this part fool you, folks. You are in for one bumpy ride. I just hope you enjoy it!

Six months after A Tale of Two Brothers

Darien and Claire swayed wordlessly in each other's arms to Sade's No Ordinary Love in the candlelit room. His eyes were locked on hers, paralyzed. He couldn't move them if he wanted to. She mesmerized him.

He ran his hand slowly through her hair, breathing in the ambrosial scent of fresh strawberries.

She in turn gently took her hand and caressed him from his forehead down to his strong jaw line in one blissfully slow motion.

He sighed achingly in response, loving the tender way she always touched him. Somehow she always knew just what he needed.

She put her head against his chest and breathed in his rich, musky scent. She could hear his heart beating rapidly in her ear. She could feel small nervous tremors in his stomach muscles as she pulled closer to him. Six months and her touch could still make him jump out of his skin.

He pulled her even closer to him. He wrapped his arms snuggly around her, putting his head on her shoulder and closing his eyes, feeling nothing but overwhelming love pouring out of his heart. He wondered how he had gotten so lucky.

-------------------------------

Darien's stomach was doing rolls. His palms were sweaty and his breath was coming in short gasps.

He carefully reached into his pocket and pulled out a small ring box. He opened the box and glanced nervously at the person sitting next to him. He took a deep breath. "Claire, I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?" he said.

Silence.

Darien's heart started beating so rapidly he thought it might explode.

"No."

Darien looked irritated. "What do you mean no?"

"No."

Darien sighed heavily and looked at Bobby, who was sitting next to him in the driver's seat of the van. "Hobbes, you're supposed to be helping me here," said Darien in frustration.

"I am helping you, partner. I'm trying to prepare you for every possible scenario, have you ready with a comeback for every outcome," said Bobby with a serious tone to his voice.

"Okay, Hobbes, this is not some kind of tactical mission, this is an engagement. Now come on man, I need help here," said Darien with desperation.

Bobby nodded. "Yeah, you definitely need something because that was pathetic."

Darien rolled his eyes. "Okay Mr. Expert. How should I do it then?" Darien asked.

"Fawkes, you gotta romance her. Women want flowers and candy and romantic moon lit strolls. They want to be wined and dined. They want us men to take charge and make their dreams come true," said Bobby matter of factly.

"Seriously, Hobbes. What the hell should I do?" asked Darien.

Bobby cleared his throat. "Well I have found in the past that women respond well to finding engagement rings in their food. Viv loved it," said Bobby with a smile.

"Ah, no offense Hobbes, but you and Viv didn't exactly live happily ever after," said Darien.

Bobby chose to ignore the comment. "Bobby Hobbes knows how to romance women," he said defensively.

"You guys are idiots," said Alex.

Darien and Hobbes turned around from their seats in the van and looked at Alex who was sitting in the back, rigging up a microphone and camera. 

"Okay Susie, since you're so smart, how should I ask Claire to marry me?" asked Darien.

Alex looked at Darien and rolled her eyes. "How should I know?"

Darien looked at with an annoyed expression. "Look, you're a chick, right. What should I do here?"

Alex sighed heavily. "Fawkes, this is not the time."

"Ah come on, Monroe. Give me a few pointers," said Darien in a pleading tone. He flashed her his puppy dog eyes. "Please."

"Fine," she said with irritation. "The problem is you're trying too hard. Keep it simple. Claire doesn't need a ring in some fried rice, she just needs to hear the words and see that you love her. No matter what you do she is going to love it because she loves you," said Alex.

"Aw, Alex, I didn't know you cared," said Darien.

"I don't. I'm just trying to get you to shut up about it so we can get back to the task at hand," said Alex sharply.

"Oh," said Darien.

Bobby nudged Darien in the ribs. "Don't listen to her, Fawkes. Keep needs flash, she needs excitement, she needs fireworks."

Alex cleared her throat. "Boys, we need to get to work here."

Darien saluted her. "Yes, ma'am." 

Alex reached up to the front and pushed the microphone into Darien's ear. Then she handed him the cap with the camera in the turtle. Darien grimaced. "Okay, the Agency really needs to invest in better hats."

"Do your thing, Fawkes," said Alex.

Darien started to get out of the van but was stopped by Bobby. "Remember partner, you need back up, you just holler. I got your back, my friend," said Bobby.

Darien smiled. "Thanks buddy."

Darien stepped out of the van and quicksilvered, slowly making his way towards an abandoned warehouse where a weapons deal was being made by some local gangsters. Darien's job was to get some video and verbal intel and then a SWAT team was going to storm in and bust them.

Darien strolled carelessly towards the warehouse, his mind on other things. Tonight was the night. He was going to pop the question. He just prayed to god that Claire loved him as much as he thought she did.

He reached the entrance of the warehouse and stepped inside. He was greeted with the shock of his life. Standing front and center next to a table filled with guns was Arnaud and Huiclos De Phon.

"Kirk, to enterprise, come in," whispered Darien into his microphone.

"What's your twenty, Fawkes?" replied Bobby into his own microphone from the van.

"Guess who decided to put in a cameo appearance? Arnaud and his brother," whispered Darien.

"What? Are you sure?" asked Bobby with surprise.

"I'm looking right at him, Hobbes," responded Darien.

Bobby glanced over at Alex. "Arnaud's in there." 

Alex quickly pulled out her cell phone and dialed a number. "This is agent Alex Monroe. We need SWAT now. Yes you heard me right, go now."

Bobby started to talk once again into the microphone. "Okay, Fawkes. Don't do anything, you hear me. Me and Monroe will be right there," said Bobby into the microphone as he reached for his gun. "You copy Fawkes?"

No answer.

"Fawkes?"

Bobby heard choking sounds coming from the receiver. He looked at Alex with panic. "We got to go now," said Bobby as he pushed Alex out of the van. 

The wire was tight across Darien's throat. He could feel it digging into his skin, causing blood to trickle down onto his shirt. The quicksilver shed from his body as he slowly started to lose control. He thrashed about, trying to throw off his attacker, but the guy was just too strong. 

Darien's vision was starting to blur. He could see Arnaud and Huiclos in a panic trying to gather up the guns. He could hear loud noises coming from outside. They sounded like trucks, but he didn't know if he was just hearing things. His body was aching for oxygen. He started to sway unsteadily as his attacker tightened his grip. So this was the way it was going to end. 

"Let him go, pal," said Bobby as he stepped in front of the pair.

The attacker pulled Darien directly in front of him so Darien was shielding his body. The attacker then backed up directly against the wall so he couldn't be shot from behind. He pulled even tighter on the wire, eliciting a choked moan from Darien. Darien could make out Bobby with his gun aimed at both of them.

"Shoot, Hobbes," gasped Darien.

Suddenly, Darien and his attacker were pushed to the side. The attacker looked down to his right and saw Alex ready to kick his leg again. This was all the distraction Bobby needed. He aimed his gun and pulled the trigger, hitting the guy in the arm. The attacker loosened his grip on Darien, who fell to the floor with a groan.

The sound of doors being kicked in filled the room. SWAT members dressed in black and armed with guns ran into the room, shouting. "Everybody Freeze!" yelled one of them.

Alex and Bobby knelt down next to Darien, who wasn't looking so good. "You okay, partner?" asked Bobby as he examined Darien's throat.

Darien grabbed at Bobby's jacket. "Get Arnaud," he choked out.

Bobby looked at Alex. "Take care of him," he said as he got up to find Arnaud.

He spotted Arnaud and Huiclos making a run for it out of a small window towards the back. Bobby cocked his gun and aimed it at both of them. "Freeze DePhons."

Arnaud clawed at his facemask, trying to rip it off so he would be invisible. Bobby shot off his gun, hitting inches away from Arnaud's head. "Don't even think about it, Arnie," yelled Bobby.

Arnaud and Huiclos both turned around. Huiclos looked completely panicked and dropped all of his guns. Arnaud looked completely at ease, as usual.

"Drop the guns, Phone," yelled Bobby.

Arnaud did what he was told. Bobby, along with two SWAT members, ran towards the two brothers. Bobby pushed Arnaud to the ground and cuffed him. "It's all over, Arnaud. You're going away for a long time, my friend," he said with satisfaction.

Arnaud started to laugh. "That's what you think, friend. Believe me, this is just a prologue."

Bobby picked Arnaud off the ground and roughly shoved him towards one of the SWAT members. "Yeah, a prologue to your life as a prison lackey."

Arnaud smiled. "Perhaps," he said as the SWAT members dragged him and Huiclos outside to their truck.

Bobby ran back over to Darien, where Alex was trying to help him recover. 

Alex took Darien's head and forced him to look her in the eyes. "Fawkes, you have to take deep breaths, okay," she said firmly.

Bobby got down on the floor and rubbed Darien on the back. "Come on, partner, breath," he said with encouragement.

Darien did what he was told and tried to take deep breaths, but every time he did he was wracked with coughs. He was starting to panic. "I can't breathe," he whispered urgently to Bobby.

"Lay him on his side," said Alex. She and Bobby both rolled him so he was laying on his side.

Darien continued to cough, but was able to get more oxygen in this position. Gradually, he was able to breathe again. He was also starting to feel the pain in his throat and neck.

"You're doing good, partner," said Bobby.

Darien looked up at Bobby. "Thanks," he slurred and then promptly passed out.

Bobby slapped his cheek. "Fawkes, Fawkes, come on buddy."

Alex pulled out her cell phone. "I'll call an ambulance."

Bobby shook his head. "No, I think he's okay. He just needs to get to the Keeper." Bobby picked up Darien's legs. "Help me get him in the van," said Bobby.

Alex picked up Darien's arms and helped carry him to the van. Bobby drove off, heading to the Agency, while Alex stayed behind to wrap up the sting operation.

A Few Hours Later

Darien opened his eyes and was greeted by the familiar surroundings of the Keep and the staring faces of Bobby and Claire.

"Cla…" he tried to rasp. His throat ached.

He reached up to his throat with his hand and all he could feel was bandages. Oh yeah, I was nearly strangled to death, he thought.

"Shhh," Claire said. "Don't try to talk," she said as she stroked his hair gently.

Darien eyed Bobby. "What happened?" Darien asked in a soft whisper. "Why was Arnaud there?"

Bobby smiled widely. "Well my friend, today may just be your lucky day. Turns out our Swiss friend was trying to get back into the terrorist game and needed some guns from our gangster pals."

Darien looked up at Bobby with confusion. "How did he know we would be there?" Darien asked. "They guy who attacked me must have had thermal."

Bobby shook his head. "Old habit. Arnie said he always makes his guys where thermal glasses wherever they go. He was as surprised to see you as you were to see him."

Darien flashed Bobby a look of eagerness. "Where is he?" he whispered loudly.

Claire sighed with concern. "Darien, no more talking," she said firmly.

Darien gave her the puppy dog eyes. "Come on, Claire, this is Arnaud. My brother's killer, my worst enemy," he whispered.

Before Claire could respond, Bobby jumped in. "He's in jail. There gonna lock away the ABBA head and throw away the key," said Bobby as he extended his hand to Darien. They slapped hands.

Darien looked at Claire in amazement. "Wow," he whispered.

Claire couldn't help but smile at the pure joy detectable is his barely there voice.

"It's over, it's finally over," whispered Darien. He looked at Claire. "Keep, we gotta celebrate."

Claire smiled widely. "Okay, but on one condition. All he celebration will be done with you in bed, resting."

Darien looked at her slyly. "Will you be in bed with me?" he whispered.

Claire played coy. "Possibly," she said with a smirk.

Bobby looked at the two of them with disgust. "Okay, can you two like stop. You're creeping me out here."

Darien smiled. "Sorry Hobbesy." After a moment he softly added, "Thanks for taking down Arnaud, Bobby."

Bobby patted Darien on the back. "Not a problem, D, it was my pleasure," he said with a smile. 

He looked at both Darien and Claire and started towards the door. "Well, I'm gonna go find Monroe and do some follow up work. You two have fun tonight," said Bobby as he winked at Darien.

"Oh don't worry, my friend, we will," whispered Darien loudly.

Bobby exited the Keep, leaving Darien and Claire alone.

Claire leaned down and hugged Darien tightly. "I'm glad you're all right, Darien. I got worried when I saw all the blood on your shirt," she said.

"Ah, don't worry about me, Claire. It's gonna take a lot more then piano wire to take me out," he said.

Claire pulled away from him. "Well you need to go home and rest," said Claire as she reached for her car keys.

"Claire, it's okay, you don't have to drive me. I'll get one of the Agency guys to do it. Finish up what you have to do here and then head on over to my place," he said as he got out of the chair.

"Are you sure you don't want me to drive you?" she asked.

"Yeah, yeah. Come over around seven and the celebration will begin," whispered Darien with a sparkle in his eye.

Claire smiled. "Seven it is. I'll stop by my house and pick out an outfit to celebrate in," she said as she walked towards him and took his hands.

" The black boots would get me in a celebratory mood," he said as he leaned in for a kiss.

"Oh, they would, would they," said Claire breathlessly between kisses.

"Uh, huh," said Darien as he kissed her again.

After a few more seconds of kissing, Darien reluctantly pulled away. "Okay, got to save myself up for celebrating tonight," he said in a husky voice. "I'll see you at seven, okay," he said as he pressed his forehead against hers.

She smiled. "Seven it is," Claire said.

After one more kiss, he walked out of the Keep. He could feel the ring box still in his pocket. Voice or no voice, tonight was the night. 

But someone else had other plans.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Devil's Silver #6 Wicked Game Part 2

Devil's Silver #6 Wicked Game Part 2

By Carol M.

Summary: Nothing is ever easy for Darien, including a marriage proposal to Claire

Spoilers: All of them just to be safe

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: I don't own them, but I really wish I did

WARNING: Grab a few tissues for this part!

Darien finished lighting the last of the candles in his apartment. He did a once over of all of his engagement preparations. Red roses in the vase. Dinner waiting in the oven. Ring tucked in his jacket. Candles lit. Music playing. Bed made. Champagne in a bucket filled with fresh ice.

He took a deep breath and walked over to his mirror, checking himself out. He hardly recognized himself in his newly purchased suit. He had figured that he should propose to Claire in style and not in his usual beat up retro wardrobe. The suit was really uncomfortable, but hopefully, if everything went well, he wouldn't be wearing it for that long anyway.

He checked his watch. 7:15. She was a little late. He was getting really nervous. He sat down on his couch and picked up one of his quote books. Maybe he could find a good quote to use on her.

He heard a soft knock on the door. His heart instantly started racing. He got up and once again looked at himself in the mirror. "Okay Darien, you can do this. You're the man," he said to his reflection. He smiled when he realized his voice sounded close to normal.

He walked to the flower vase and pulled out a rose. Then he walked to the door. He stood there for a few seconds, terrified. Then he took a deep breath and opened the door. "Let's get this celebration …Hobbes, what the hell are you doing here?" he asked with agitation as he saw Bobby on the other side of the door.

Bobby didn't respond. 

"Tonight's the night man, I need a little privacy here if you don't mind," said Darien. It was then that Darien noticed Bobby's face. It was deathly pale and he looked extremely shaken.

"What's wrong, buddy?" asked Darien with concern. He opened the door wider and let Bobby in.

Bobby looked around nervously, seeing all of Darien's romantic handiwork. "I don't know how to tell you this, partner," Bobby said so softly it was almost a whisper.

Dread crept into the pit of Darien's stomach. "What, what is it?" Darien asked with morbid anticipation.

Bobby pointed to the couch. "Sit down, Darien," said Bobby.

Darien was taken aback by Bobby's use of his first name. He felt dizzy with anticipation. He made his way to the couch, not really wanting to know what Bobby was about to tell him.

Bobby sat down next to him, not meeting Darien's eyes. 

"What is it Bobby? Are you okay? Is it Viv?," Darien asked quickly. A horrible thought entered Darien's mind. "Is it Claire?" he asked in a whisper.

Bobby took a deep breath. "Me and Monroe were driving back to the warehouse to do a little wrap up work. We were driving past Claire's house," he said slowly.

Darien's stomach clenched at Bobby's mention of Claire.

"Her house, it's gone, partner, it's gone. It blew up," Bobby continued with tears starting to sparkle in his eyes.

Darien shook his head. "Yeah, but she wasn't in there, right. I mean she was at the Agency or she was on her way over here. She wasn't in there when it blew up," said Darien with a look of desperation. "Right?"

Bobby finally met Darien's eyes and shook his head. "They found a body. The Official got some coroner guy over there pronto to compare Claire's dental records," said Bobby as he put a supportive hand on Darien's shoulders. "They matched, partner… She's gone," said Bobby softly.

Darien took a shuddering breath. He shook his head violently. "No, no, I don't believe you. This is just some kind of sick game the Agency is playing. They just want us to think she's dead," Darien yelled as tears welled up in his eyes.

Bobby shook his head sadly. "I wish that were true partner, but its not. Claire's dead."

Darien quickly stood up and was overcome by dizziness. He fell to the ground, nearly hitting his head on his coffee table. Bobby was quickly at his side. He put a firm hand on his arm and helped him up. "I got you partner," said Bobby as a tear threatened to fall.

Darien looked at Bobby. Bobby would never forget the look in Darien's eyes. All he could see was hurt, loss and grief. 

"I can't go through this again, Bobby. I can't lose someone else I love," sobbed Darien, who looked like he was about to collapse again. Bobby stepped forward and took him into a strong hug. 

"Were gonna get through this my friend," said Bobby, trying to be strong for his partner. He could feel Darien shaking and swaying in his grip. "Let's get you down to the floor, buddy," said Bobby as he gently eased himself and Darien into a sitting position on the floor.

"I loved her Bobby, I loved her so much," Darien whimpered, his voice turning into a hoarse whisper, heavy sobs wracking his body.

Bobby hugged Darien tighter, rubbing his back. He was dangerously close losing it himself. "She knew you loved her, D," he said. "I loved her too," Bobby said softly. 

At this admission, Bobby lost all control. He started to cry like a baby. 

The two partners gripped tightly to one another, sobbing into each other's arms, mourning the loss of the woman they both loved. 

Forty-five minutes later, they were in the van, on the way to the Agency. Darien had convinced himself that the Official was behind the whole thing. Bobby wasn't so sure, but what could he do? Right now, all he wanted was answers.

"Do we know what blew the house up yet?" yelled the Official angrily into the phone. "Well you tell them to get their info together and find out now. If I don't have the information on my desk in an hour, then they're all fired," he yelled, slamming the phone down.

He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. He was startled when Darien and Bobby came bursting through the door.

Darien walked right up to the Official, murder is his eyes. "You did this, you bastard. This is some kind of Agency game," he said coldly.

The Official shook his head. "Nope, not this time, Darien," a look of sadness in his eyes.

Darien chuckled slightly. "I don't believe you, Charlie. How many times have you manipulated me in the past, huh? I mean the only reason I work here is because you're blackmailing me with a drug."

The Official got out of his chair and walked towards Darien. "Son, I admit to manipulating you in the past, but this is not one of those times," he said softly.

"Don't call me son. I'm not your son," Darien fired back. "Why did you do it? Did you find out about us? Did you find out that me and Claire were in love? Did you find out that your precious Keeper and her lab rat were having sex on the counter of the Keep? Huh, Charlie?"

"Fawkes," Bobby said softly. "That's enough."

Darien ignored him. "I want to know why you did it?" he asked as tears started to well once again in his eyes. 

"Believe whatever you want about me, Fawkes, I don't really care. But know this, I didn't have anything to do with this and neither did the Agency. Claire was a colleague and a friend. I wouldn't have her killed to prove some kind of point or to keep you in line," said the Official with anger.

"You lying son of a bitch," said Darien as he lunged towards the Official. 

"Fawkes," yelled Bobby as he stepped quickly towards the two of them. He grabbed Darien and dragged him away from the Official. "He didn't do it, buddy," said Bobby as he pushed Darien into a chair.

Darien stared up at the ceiling as the tears once again started to fall. The room was filled with awkward silence as nobody dared to say a word . 

After a few minutes, Darien looked over at the Official, his eyes wide with pain. "I'm sorry, sir," he said softly.

The Official nodded. "I know," he said.

"Come on, Fawkes, I'm gonna take you home, let you get some sleep," said Bobby.

Darien nodded. "Okay," he said in a dull monotone. 

Bobby walked over to Darien and helped him out of the chair guiding him to the door. 

"Bobby, can I have a word before you go?" asked the Official. 

"Yeah, chief," he said as he looked at Darien. "Wait for me in the van, okay pal."

Darien nodded and headed out the door.

"Sir?" said Bobby.

"Were going to find out who did this. We should have the cause of the explosion in about an hour. I will take all of the authority I have in this Agency and try to punish the bastards who did this," he said matter of factly.

Bobby smiled slightly. "Thank you, sir."

"Watch Fawkes, Bobby. He might drown in this," said the Official.

Bobby nodded. "I will, sir," said Bobby as he walked out the door.

__

She was wearing the black boots. She looked beautiful. "Yes, I would love to marry you, Darien," she said with a smile.

They linked arms and hugged tightly. Then they started to passionately kiss. 

"Darien, I love you, I will always love you," she said with a smile.

Darien sat up abruptly in bed, her scent all he could smell. For a moment he forgot, but then he remembered. She was gone.

He could see Bobby's sleeping form on the couch in the living room. When he was in his right mind, he would have to thank him for that.

He got up out of his bed, holding his stomach, feeling nauseous. He was going to be sick. He ran to the bathroom and threw up until nothing would come up. Then he laid down on the floor of the bathroom, hugging himself, missing her so much it hurt.

He felt someone pat him on his back. "You okay, partner?" asked Bobby, his tired eyes etched with concern.

Darien shook his head. He wasn't going to be all right for a long time.

Two Days Later.

Darien set the rose on her closed coffin. He stepped back and looked at all the people attending Claire's funeral. In addition to Bobby, Alex, Eberts, the Official and himself, quite a few people from the D.O.D as well as some other people Darien didn't recognized attended. Claire would've been impressed. He watched Alex make her way up towards the casket to give a eulogy.

Alex stepped up to the podium, a piece of paper in her hand. "I didn't really know Claire all that well, but I felt that she and I could have become good friends," she said with a sad smile. "I really admired her. She was intelligent and sweet and beautiful. She was a hard worker. But she was also tough. No one could mess with her."

Alex looked down at the ground and took a deep breath, forcing tears to stay in her eyes. "I'll admit that I'm not the easiest person to get along with. But one day, I was in the bathroom crying about some stupid drama in my life. Claire came in and talked to me. When ended up talking for hours about stupid women's stuff. It was the first time I felt like I might really be able to fit in at the Agency. Thanks Claire, for making me feel more comfortable," said Alex. "I will miss you," she said as she stepped down from the podium.

The Official stepped past Alex and took his own stance on the podium. "Alex already told you what a wonderful person Claire was. I want to tell you what a professional she was. She served her country well, risking her life for the good of the Agency. Always willing to lend a hand or her vast expertise to help with a case. Hiring her was the best decision I ever made. The United States lost one of its greatest heroes. She will be remembered with honor," said the Official as he stepped down.

Eberts quickly took his place. " Claire, you were a good friend and a hero, as the boss said. You served the Agency and your friends well. You will be missed," mumbled Eberts awkwardly. He looked like he wanted to say something else, but instead he nervously looked over at Bobby and stepped off the podium.

Bobby stepped up next. "What can I add to all of that? That she was caring and understanding. That she was tender and sweet. That I loved her as a friend. That she was one of the best I ever had. Keepie, wherever you are, I miss you," said Bobby as he stepped down, wiping a stray tear out of his eye.

Darien patted Bobby on the shoulder as he stepped up to the podium, tears shimmering in his eyes. "Normally I would have some snappy quote to perfectly sum up a situation, but I don't. What words can sum up this tragedy? I want to make a confession here. I was in love with Claire. She was the love of my life in fact," said Darien as he started to sniffle. "Claire, I was going to ask you marry me. I wanted you to be my wife. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you. Please know how much I love you."

Darien stepped off the podium and joined the rest of them. After a speech from the priest, her casket was slowly lowered into the ground. Darien thought of Kevin. He had decided to bury Claire right next to him. He hoped she wouldn't mind.

He bit his lower lip, trying desperately not to cry in front of all these people. But as her casket was lowered deeper into the ground, it all hit him. She was really dead. He would never see her again. 

Darien started to cry. The Official, who was standing next to him, looked over at him and noticed the tears pouring down Darien's cheeks. He gently nudged the younger man and took him in his arms, hugging him. He felt Darien's shuddering sobs course through his body. "It's all right, Darien, it's all right," he whispered into his ear.

The Official looked over at Alex, Bobby and Eberts and saw tears streaming down all of their cheeks. He felt something wet on his cheek and realized that tears were falling from his own eyes as well.

Whoever had done this was going to pay.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

The room was almost all silver. It looked like a space age version of the padded room. There was a metal desk and metal chair that looked really uncomfortable. A laptop sat on the desk. A bed sat against one of the walls, neatly made with crisp, white sheets. Claire had no idea where she was or what had happened. All she knew was that she wanted Darien and she wanted him right now.

To be continued tomorrow, I promise :) !!!!!!!!!


	3. Chapter 3

Devil's Silver #6- Wicked Game Part 3

Devil's Silver #6- Wicked Game Part 3

By Carol M.

See first parts for disclaimer and notes. Thanks for all the feedback guys! You have no idea how good it makes me feel! Enjoy!

Claire sat at the laptop in the silver room, trying desperately to communicate with someone on the outside, but every time she tried to send an email or any kind of message, it was erased. The door of the room slid open. Claire immediately jumped out of her chair and backed up towards the wall.

A man dressed in an expensive looking suit walked towards her, smiling. "Don't be afraid, Miss Spencer. If we wanted to hurt you, we would have done it already," he said calmly.

"Why should I believe you?" she asked coldly. "Where the hell am I? Why am I here?"

The man smiled. "Well miss, they don't tell me much, I'm just the hired help. I'll let my boss explain everything to you," he said as he walked to the door and opened it. He leaned outside and said "Sir."

The man walked back into the room, followed by Garrett Stark, who was holding an envelope. Claire's eyes widened in horror. "You. You did this," Claire asked, fire leaking out of her tone. 

Stark looked at her and smiled coldly.

"What do you want?" she asked softly.

Stark cleared his throat. "Well Miss Spencer, Claire, may I call you, Claire? Well, we at Chrysalis are known for our innovative technology. Naturally that would require that we compete with all of our enemies. We have developed our own quicksilver gland," he said with pride.

Claire shook her head with disgust.

"But unfortunately, our developers are not as brilliant as Kevin Fawkes," Stark continued. "We have a few problems with it. I figured that with your close-up knowledge of the quicksilver gland, you could help us work out the problems and then help with the installation of it into one of our people," he said.

Claire laughed. "Why would you think I would help you?"

"Because, I can kill Darien Fawkes anytime I want to," he said.

Claire was dying on the inside, but she tried to keep a cool facade. "Why would I care about Darien Fawkes?" she asked casually.

Stark opened the envelope he had been holding and took out a picture, handing it to Claire. She took the picture and saw that it was of her and Darien kissing tenderly in the park. 

"Because Claire, you are in love with him," Stark said smugly. "Now if you cooperate with us, then I promise you, Fawkes will not be harmed. But if you even think about double crossing us or trying to contact your people, then he will be killed," said Stark firmly.

Claire looked up at him, tears starting to well. "Don't you think that as soon as the Agency finds out about this, they would take you down?" she asked.

"Oh, that's not going to be a problem," Stark said quickly. "The Agency thinks your dead."

Stark pulled out another picture and handed it to her. It showed a casket, with her picture on a stand sitting next to it. She could make out Darien and Bobby, both with tears streaming down their faces.

Claire started towards Stark. Stark put his hands up and pushed her away. "Now, now Claire. I won't tolerate this kind of behavior."

Claire, in shock, walked towards the bed, sitting down. "How did you do it?" she asked quietly.

"After we jumped you, we blew up your house. Put a cadaver in it and paid off the coroner to tell the Agency that your dental records matched. You have no idea how easy it is to make someone disappear," said Stark.

Tears started to fall from Claire's eyes. 

"If you need a little incentive, I'm sure I can arrange some kind of accident for Fawkes that will cause him lots of pain and suffering. But you wouldn't want that now, would you, Claire," asked Stark.

Claire shook her head. "No, don't hurt him," she said with desperation.

"Well Claire, that's up to you. You do what we want and Fawkes will not be harmed. Do we have a deal?" asked Stark.

Claire slowly nodded.

Stark smiled. "Good. Well I'll let you get settled in here then," he said as he and his lackey left the room.

Claire curled up on the bed and started to cry, wanting so bad to get in touch with Darien and tell him that she alive.

Darien, Bobby, Alex, and the Official sat around a table in the Agency, looking through evidence pictures of Claire's blown up house.

"So it was a bomb," said Bobby, to the Official.

The Official nodded. "Yep. Our guys said it was attached to the front door. As soon as she opened it, it blew."

Darien's stomach did a small back flip when he thought of Claire's final moments.

"So back to the bomb. Anyone we know?" asked Bobby.

The Official shook his head. "No, no, it was an ordinary bomb, nothing fancy. No identifying marks of any kind."

Darien laughed out loud. They all turned their heads and looked at him. "Why are we even having this discussion. I mean we know who did it," said Darien.

Bobby eyed Darien. "Okay, big shot, who did it?" he asked Darien.

"Hello...Arnaud! He's pissed cause he's in jail, so he decided to kill Claire to get revenge."

Alex chimed in. "Yeah, but Fawkes, he's in jail. He couldn't exactly walk out, put a bomb in her house and then walk back in."

Darien shook his head. "Of course he didn't put the bomb in there himself, he had one of his boyfriends do it."

"Yeah, but this all happened the day he was arrested. I don't think even Arnaud could work that fast," said Bobby with doubt.

"Whatever, believe me, don't believe me. But I know Arnaud had something to do with this," said Darien firmly.

Darien stood up from his chair and walked to the Official. "I want to go see Arnaud," Darien said.

The Official shook his head. "Nope, nope, out of the question. You'd probably go in there and kill him. Hobbes and Monroe will go instead."

Darien bent down and looked the Official in the eyes. "I need to do this, sir. I promise I won't damage him, at least not beyond repair."

The Official saw the look in Darien's eye. He knew no matter what he said, Darien would go see Arnaud.

"All right, you can go on one condition, Hobbes and Monroe go in there with you. And if you start to mess with him, Hobbes has permission to drag you off of him and throw you out of the cell. Is that clear?" asked the Official.

Darien nodded. "Yes, sir."

Darien looked at Bobby and Alex. "Let's go guys."

"Wait, Fawkes, there is a little matter of your shot," said the Official.

"Shot?" asked Darien with surprise. He had completely forgotten about counteragent and QSM the past few days. "Who's going to give it to me?"

"Your new Keeper," said the Official slowly. He handed Darien a file. Darien took the file and started looking through it, seeing a picture of an attractive looking red head with short hair.

"Kara Vore, biochemist. Specialist in brain chemistry. Formerly employed at JPL and the DOD" said Darien as he looked through the file. "Got a new one awfully fast, didn't you Fatman. A little too convenient I would say," said Darien coldly.

The Official shook his head. "Nope. She's been a standby for about a year now. I had to plan for every little contingency, have a backup if something ever happened to Claire. She's been debriefed on everything she needs to know. She's already made a batch of counteragent for you," said the Official.

"Well she sounds very efficient," said Darien sarcastically.

"You took very well to your last Keeper. Maybe this one will be more of the same," said the Official with a grin.

Darien gave him a sharp look. "Not likely." 

"Bobby, Alex, can I have some time with Fawkes," said the Official.

"Yes, sir," said both Bobby and Alex. "Meet you in the van in about 20 minutes, okay Fawkesy?" said Bobby.

Darien nodded. "Yeah," he said absently.

He looked at the Official. "So what's up?" he asked with curiosity.

"Two things," said the Official. "There is the matter of a dog."

Darien gave him a strange look. "Dog?"

"Claire's dog. Neighbor found him wandering around a few days ago. Gave him to the police. I figured maybe you would want him," said the Official.

Darien slowly started to nod. "Yeah, I would," he said with a sad smile.

"Good, he's in lab 3, chewing everything up," said the Official. "The sooner that little monster is out of here, the happier I'll be."

"What was the other thing?" asked Darien.

The Official walked to his desk, opening a drawer and taking out a small book. He held it out to Darien. He saw the word Diary etched across it

Darien looked up at the Official. "What is this?" he asked.

"I found that in Claire's desk in the Keep. I went through it yesterday to remove any classified documents," said the Official. "This is not a classified document, well at least not in many senses of the word. It's all about you," he said as he handed the diary to Darien. "I only read the first couple of sentences and skimmed the rest. I think she would have wanted you to have it."

Darien took the diary and softly caressed the top of it. "Thank you, sir," he said softly.

The Official patted him on the back. "Now, I want you to go to the Keep and get a shot and meet your new Keeper," said the Official.

Darien nodded. "Yes, sir," he said as he started to walk towards the door. He turned around slightly, holding the diary in the air. "Thanks again for this," he said with sincerity.

The Official nodded and Darien walked out the door.

He could see her red hair hidden partially by the chair as he entered the Keep. She turned around quickly at the sound of the door. "Mister Fawkes," she said with a smile as she stood up, extending her hand.

Darien walked over to her and shook her hand. 

"Kara Vore, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm sorry it was under these circumstances," she said with a look of sympathy.

Darien nodded. He looked around the Keep. "Well it looks like you didn't waste any time redecorating the place," he said sarcastically.

All the furniture had been moved around and a new computer sat in the middle of the room.

Kara smiled. "I'm just trying to get comfortable, that's all."

Darien looked at her strangely for a second. "Have we met before?"

Kara gave him a look of surprise. "I don't think so. Maybe you've seen me around the Agency before. Charlie has me come in every couple of months and do a few jobs for him."

"Ah," said Darien. He pointed to the counteragent chair. "Look, I really need to get going. Can I get my shot?" he asked as he stepped closer to the chair and sat down.

Kara nodded. "Sure," she said as she walked over to the refrigerator and took out a vial of counteragent. She got the needle, filled it with counteragent and then walked over to Darien. She pulled out an alcohol swipe. "This might sting a bit," she said.

Darien rolled his eyes. "You know, I have had these shots before. I know the drill," he said.

She ignored the comment and injected him with the counteragent, causing Darien to wince hard. Claire was definitely much better at giving him the shots.

Kara threw the needle into the medical waste container. 

Darien got out of the chair and headed for the door.

"Mr. Fawkes, I'm going to need to schedule a few tests for you," said Kara.

Darien turned around. "Why?" he asked with irritation.

"Because I need to get better acquainted with the gland. I want to see how certain parts of your brain respond to the gland, so I can get a better idea of how it works, maybe even find a way to take it out," she said.

"If there was a way to take the gland out, Claire would have already done it," said Darien defensively.

"With all due respect, Mr. Fawkes, Miss Spencer was not the end all of medical research. There were certain things she may have missed or might not have known about," said Kara.

"Not likely," said Darien as he turned around and walked out the door.

Darien, Bobby and Alex all signed the visitor log at the prison where Arnaud and his brother were being kept. Arnaud and Huiclos were going to trial in about a month. They had both been denied bail because of an extreme flight risk. 

Since Arnaud was still invisible, he had been placed in a special cell equipped with thermal, so he wouldn't be able to escape. All of the prison guards were issued thermal glasses, in case Arnaud decided to break out. Not that it really mattered, because he continued to wear his latex body. Thank god for small things, thought Darien as he followed Alex and Bobby into the visitor's room.

Darien, Bobby and Alex stood in the room for a few minutes in awkward silence, waiting for Arnaud to show up. Finally, a guard opened the door and walked a handcuffed Arnaud towards the chair at the table.

The guard looked up at the trio. "Ten minutes," he said as he walked out the door.

Arnaud looked up at the three of them and smiled. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?" Arnaud asked with a smile.

Darien sat in the chair across from Arnaud, trying to stay calm. "Why did you do it?" he asked Arnaud softly.

Arnaud gave him a look of confusion. "Do what? Buy guns? Well my business requires heavy..."

"Why did you kill her, you sick bastard," yelled Darien.

"Who?" asked Arnaud with confusion.

"Claire. You put a bomb in her house and killed her. I want to know why. Why wouldn't you kill me instead?" asked Darien, who was barely able to control his emotions.

Arnaud sat back in his chair and took a deep breath. "So someone killed your Keeper," said Arnaud. "I'm sorry, Fawkes, I know how much you cared for her," he said with sympathy.

Darien shook his head angrily. "No, no don't give me that. You killed her, just like you killed Kevin. Don't play me with this sympathy act," yelled Darien.

Arnaud smiled. "Believe what you want, Fawkes. I didn't kill her. What possible motive would I have? Your Keeper could have been very useful to me, why would I kill her? I never kill people whose help I might need," said Arnaud coolly.

Alex stepped towards Darien and put a hand on his shoulder. "I think we should go, Fawkes. This isn't getting anywhere."

Darien slapped her hand away. "No, no we're not going anywhere."

"Fawkes, Monroe is right. Have you ever know De Phon here to deny a crime. He likes to admit when he's done something. Sicko gets off on it," said Bobby.

Arnaud looked at Darien. "I'm sure you have many other enemies besides me, Fawkes," said Arnaud, planting a seed in Darien's mind. " Surely, someone else would want her dead."

Bobby nodded. "Exactly. What about chrysalis?"

Arnaud gave Bobby a sharp look. "Chrysalis?"

"What, you heard of them?" asked Darien.

Arnaud rolled his eyes. "Of course I've heard of them. I'm a terrorist, they're terrorists. I know all my enemies," he responded.

"Do you have any information on them?" asked Alex. "A place to start?"

"Now, why would my enemy give me any useful information? If I knew a place to start, they wouldn't be my enemy anymore, they would be gone," said Arnaud.

"Come on, Fawkes," said Bobby as he reached for his arm. "Let's go find the wacko cocoon head."

Darien leaned in towards Arnaud. "I don't trust you, Arnie. If I find out you had anything to do with this, I will kill you," said Darien with venom. He got out of the chair and walked out of the room.

Bobby looked at Arnaud. "If my partner's right, then I will be in line right behind him to take you down, my friend."

Bobby and Alex both stepped out the room.

Arnaud sat in the room alone for a few seconds, congratulating himself on a job well done.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

Devil's Silver #6 Wicked Game Part 4

Devil's Silver #6 Wicked Game Part 4

By Carol M.

See first part for disclaimer

Author's note: The excerpts from Claire's diary in this part are from my story A Tale of Two Brothers. It's not necessary to read that story before reading that part, but if you're interested you can find it at Fanfiction.net. Anyway, enjoy guys!

Claire typed on the computer, completing a report about how the gland could be surgically implanted into a host's head. She eyed the door every couple of seconds. She figured if she could surprise a person coming in, she might be able to get outside the door and find out exactly where she was.

She had completed an analysis of all the genetic codes present in the gland Chrysalis had made. She had toyed with the idea of adding QSM into the gland, but decided against it. She didn't want a terrorist going even more wacko then they already were and savagely raping or killing people. 

She exited out of the program on her computer and stood up, picking up the chair she had been sitting in. She walked to the door, holding the chair, ready to pounce on the next person who entered the room. Someone would come for her eventually.

They had no leads. Darien, Bobby and Alex had visited every former Chrysalis location and come up empty. They had checked the kid's summer camp, the Cryolab and they had even sifted through the remains of the skyscraper known as Hades. Nothing.

Darien didn't try to contact Stark. He didn't want to let him know that they were investigating Chrysalis. If he was going to take them down, he was going to do it right.

All of these thoughts clouded Darien's mind as he laid in a PET scan. Kara was testing the gland's operation in different parts of his brain so she could better understand how it worked. He remembered the last time he had been in a PET scan, with Arnaud and Elizabeth Rendell at the helm. Arnaud. The thought of Arnaud made him want to explode. Darien banged his hand against the chair in frustration.

"You all right, Mr. Fawkes," he heard Kara asked with concern evident in her tone.

Darien sighed in frustration. "Yeah, I'm just great," he said.

"We're almost done here, Mr. Fawkes, just try and relax," he heard her say.

He rolled his eyes. "You know, Ms. Vore, you can call me Darien. I mean I'm not 60 years old or something," he said.

He felt the chair he was lying on slide out of the PET scan. Kara greeted him with a smile. "Well then, you can call me Kara," she said.

He nodded. He cleared his throat and looked at her awkwardly. "Hey, um, about the other day, I was kind of a bastard. I'm sorry," he said.

Kara waved him off. "Don't worry about it. I know it's been rough for you, coming in here and having a new Keeper," she said as she ejected a disk out of her computer. She put it in a file marked Darien Fawkes and then put the file in a drawer, locking it.

She looked at him pointedly. "So, any good leads on who murdered your old Keeper?" she asked with curiosity.

Darien shook his head sadly. "Nope. Nothing."

Kara gave him a sympathetic look. "Well I'm sure you'll come up with something," she said.

Darien nodded. "Yeah," he said, distracted . He took a deep breath and then came back to Earth. "Am I done?" he asked.

Kara nodded. "Yep, you're done."

"Okay, well, maybe I'll see you tomorrow," said Darien as he got out of the chair.

"Bye Darien," Kara said.

Darien waved and walked out the door.

Pavlov greeted him at his door as Darien walked into his apartment. 

"Hey buddy," said Darien as he reached down and petted him. He walked over to the counter and pulled a dog treat out of a container, handing it to Pavlov.

Pavlov wagged his tail and ran off to a basket by the window that now served as his bed.

Darien sighed heavily. He walked into his bathroom and turned the shower on. He took off his clothes and stared into the mirror. He looked like crap. His normally handsome face looked drawn and tired. He looked at his body and realized how thin he was getting. Eating hadn't exactly been a top priority the last couple of days.

He ran his hands over his face and then stepped into the shower. He let the warm water flow over his body, trying to relax. He sagged against the wall, a few absent tears dripping down his face. He felt so empty.

He got out of the shower 20 minutes later, his body a wrinkled prune. He put on a wife beater and some pajama bottoms and sat down on his bed, eyeing his nightstand. Claire's diary sat there, both calling him and driving him away all at once. It had sat there for the past 3 days. He had been too chicken to look through it. But something told him that he was ready to read it.

He picked up the diary and laid down on his bed, against a pillow. In an instant, he was joined by Pavlov, who made himself comfortable on Darien's stomach. Darien looked down and smiled slightly at the dog. At least he still had someone to cuddle with, he thought sadly.

Darien ran his hand over the top of the diary, feeling the smoothness of the cover. He put it to his nose and inhaled. Her scent was still on it.

With shaking hands, he turned to the first page and soon discovered that the diary was the story of Claire and Darien's love.

_There once was a story about a girl who met her prince charming. I thought it was only a story,_

until it happened to me.

Darien smiled. That first sentence seemed awfully familiar to him.

_You see, it took someone else to make me realize that my prince charming was right in front of me and that someone else was prince charming's brother, Kevin Fawkes. Kevin and I dated for about a year when we were both going to Caltech. He was the first love of my life. _

Darien was in shock. He had no idea that Claire had known Kevin, much less that they had dated. He went on in the diary, reading about Kevin's death and how she had been hired at F&G.

Darien smiled when he read her first impression of him. So she thought I was hot, he chuckled.

_All Darien did was bitch and moan about the gland and about not wanting to work at the Agency. This was definitely going to be a long couple of years._

Darien scoffed. That's not all I did, he thought. He read on, reading about Claire's increasing attraction to him. He laughed when he got to the part about her being jealous about all of his women. Allianora. He remembered how embarrassing it was telling Claire that he had caught the nanobugs from sex with Alli. He had wanted to crawl in a hole and die.

Darien swore his heart stopped beating as he went on and read her interpretation of the Kevin RNA incident.

_Darien became Kevin. Kevin was exactly the same. God I had missed him. All those old feelings came rushing to the surface. And then he kissed me. It was at that moment that I realized how much I cared for Darien. It was Kevin kissing me, but it was Darien that I was kissing. Darien's hair, his lips, his stubble, his scent, his breath. It felt so right, yet so wrong at the same time. I had to pull away. _

Kevin made me realize that I didn't love him anymore. Well, maybe that's not true. I will always love Kevin. But at the moment, I realized that I was in love with Darien.

He felt his heart might burst. She had picked him over Kevin. No one had ever picked him over his brother his entire life, unless it was for some sort of criminal venture. He wished he could remember kissing her.

He went on, reading about the rape, which made him sick inside. Then he read about the events of the last couple of months. Her kidnapping, the rescue, almost dying, their first kiss…

_A few days later, in the hospital, we had our first kiss. A kiss between Darien and me, not Kevin and me, not QSM Darien and me, but Darien. Everything that I had wanted for so long came out in that kiss. It left me shaky and lightheaded. I can only hope it did the same thing to him._

Darien shook his head in disbelief. What are you crazy Claire? I could barely breathe after that kiss, he thought.

He went on, reading about being on the run from the Agency, getting the quicksilver files back and visiting his brother in the cemetery.

He cringed when he got to the part where she compared sex with him and Kevin. He really did not need to know how his brother had made love to her. But he felt his heart racing and his body tingling when she described Darien's own love.

_He needs to show me how much he loves me and in turn, he needs to be shown how much he is loved, to be reassured constantly. I love his love. I crave his love. He needs my love. _

Boy was she right about that last part. He went on.

_Darien needs someone to love him and I have accepted the challenge. It's not hard to love him. Besides his good looks, his charm and his wit, there are so many hidden qualities that not many people get to see. His intelligence, his heart, his conscience, his love. Darien's love comes with a price. The price is seeing the person you love in pain. Whether it be from the QSM, the random injuries he seems to get everyday from working in the field, or the emotional pain that he constantly puts himself through, Darien lives in a world of pain. I guess all I can do is try to ease it. To be his Band-Aid. I will do my best to protect him, not because of Kevin, not because it is the right thing to do, but because I love him._

Blown away, Darien closed the book and put it over his heart. He had no idea she had cared for him that much. He had assumed, as always that he loved her more than she loved him. But he had been dead wrong. His heart felt full and happy and cold and empty, all at the same time.

God, he wanted to tell her what he felt. How his body tingled every time she walked into a room. How just knowing that she was in his bed made him sleep better. How much he treasured her stupid jokes and her seemingly endless stream of knowledge.

He got out of bed, much to Pavlov's dismay and grabbed a pen and paper. He wrote a letter to her, pouring his heart out. By the time he was done, random teardrops had wrinkled parts of the paper. He folded the letter and put it in his drawer, along with the engagement ring. He got back into bed, exhausted. His dreams were filled with images of him and Claire dancing under moonlight.

Claire had been waiting for what seemed like hours. The chair was held firmly in here hands, ready to smash anyone who came through the door.

She could hear noises coming from outside. She brought the chair up and took a deep breath. She could here whistling. The door opened. "Miss Spencer," she heard a voice say.

She swung the chair and hit the whistling man with all the force she had. He instantly dropped to the floor, unconscious. She set the chair down and eased around the corner of the door. She was in a long deserted hallway. She quickly ran down the hallway until she came to a corridor. She took a left in the corridor and ended up in another hallway. She could see a door. She started for the door, running as fast as she could.

She was just about to the door, ready to open it. Then to her horror, the door opened, revealing Stark, holding a gun on her.

"Don't even try it, Claire," he said.

She backed up in a panic and tripped over her own feet, falling to the floor hard. Two big guys appeared from behind Stark. They picked her off the floor and started to carry her back to her room, with Stark right behind them.

"No!" she screamed, trying to struggle out of their grip, but they were too big for her.

Once back in the room, they tossed her on the bed. One of the big guys dragged the unconscious man out of the room. The other left right behind him.

Stark stood before her, shaking his head with disappointment. "Now, Claire, what did I tell you about cooperating with us? About not trying anything?" Stark sighed. "I guess were going to have to punish Fawkes for your little stunt," he said with a smile.

"You are going to bloody well burn in hell for this you bastard," said Claire, with anger.

"Maybe next time you'll learn to listen," said Stark coldly.

He turned around and walked out of the room, locking the door behind him, leaving Claire to worry about Darien.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Darien walked through the cemetary and sat down in between Kevin and Claire's tombstones

Devil's Silver #6 Wicked Game Part 5

By Carol M.

Enjoy guys!

Darien walked through the cemetery and sat down in between Kevin and Claire's tombstones.

"Hey guys," he said softly. He looked at the tombstones and smiled slightly, shaking his head. "So you guys dated. I never would have guessed that," he said, thinking that burying Claire next to Kevin hadn't been such a bad idea after all. He eyed Kevin's tombstone. "Just don't get any ideas, Kev," trying to go for a light tone, but failing miserably.

Darien sighed heavily and put his head in his hands. After a few minutes he looked up. "Well, I guess you guys left me hear all alone. I honestly don't know if I'm going to make it through this time. I don't feel anything, anymore, I'm just a bunch of empty space."

Darien stood up and took the letter he had written the night before out of his pocket. "I read your diary, Claire. I read all of the things you said about me. It made me feel really good and then it left me feeling nothing but loss. So I thought I would write you a note and tell you what you mean to me," said Darien as he placed the note on top of Claire's tombstone, putting a small rock on top of it so it wouldn't blow away. "There it is. I don't know how it works when you're dead, you know if you guys are watching me right now and making fun of my hair or something, or if your both just gone. Either way, I needed to do this, to believe that there's someway that you can read this letter because I love you, Claire. I want you to know how much you mean to me."

He looked at Kevin's tombstone, tears threatening to fall. "I love you too, bro. If you guys are up in heaven together, take care of each other. Maybe by some miracle I'll end up there one day too," he said.

He walked into the middle of the two tombstones, kissed his hands and then set his hands on both of their tombstones. "Take care, guys," he said, brushing tears out of his eyes. He took a deep breath and started walking towards his car.

He pulled his keys out of his pocket and was about to open his door when he felt the intense pain of a knife being pushed into the left side his lower back. He turned around in surprise and was promptly hit across the face with a gun. He recognized one of his attackers as a Chrysalis goon. He could have sworn that just before he passed out he saw a camera flash, but that might have just been a hallucination.

-----------------------------------

Stark signed his name as Brian Ketterer, the name of an old high school friend. He followed the guard into the prison visitation room and waited.

When Arnaud was led into the room, he gave Stark a harsh look. 

"Ten minutes," said the guard as he left the room.

Arnaud sat down in the chair roughly. "What the hell are you doing here, you idiot? I don't want anyone figuring out we're working together," he said with anger.

Stark cleared his throat. "I just thought I would give you a little update since you don't have access to a phone or a computer. Miss Spencer is not cooperating as nicely as I had hoped. I had to give her a little incentive."

Arnaud shook his head. "Your end of the deal was to get Miss Spencer to figure out the bugs in the gland. That way, I fix mine and your organization gets its own working gland. I don't want to hear about your incompetence," said Arnaud as he leaned in towards Stark. "You go messing around and then you get Fawkes on your back. Don't underestimate him. He's has turned into quite a pain in the ass."

"Believe me, I know," said Stark.

Arnaud sighed. "So, are you getting all the information you need?"

Stark nodded. "Some of it, yes, but like I said, she's being difficult."

"Well, I guess you'll just have to try a little harder, won't you," said Arnaud.

Stark looked around the room. "It's unfortunate that you got arrested. It's going to be difficult to fix the gland while you're locked up in jail."

Arnaud smiled. "A minor inconvenience, I assure you. Besides, you wouldn't be thinking about double crossing me, would you?"

Stark shook his head. "Never," he said.

"Well, I'm glad everything is clear, monsieur," said Arnaud coolly.

"Crystal," said Stark as he got out of his chair. "Enjoy the food," he said as he walked out of the door.

Arnaud smiled. "Oh I will, little prick," he said to himself.

Bobby drove his van around town like a madman, looking for Darien, wanting to talk to him. Something was eating him about Claire's death. At first he thought it was because he didn't want to believe she was dead. But as the hours went on, his itch kept intensifying. Things just weren't making sense and when Bobby Hobbes had a hunch, he was normally right. Well if you don't count that whole Brock incident, that is.

Bobby had been to the Agency, the Keep, and Darien's apartment. He was on his way to the only other place he thought Darien might be, the cemetery.

A few minutes later, he pulled into the parking lot, spotting Darien's car. So predictable, thought Bobby as he stepped out of the van. He walked towards Darien's car and stopped short when he saw a foot peaking out next to the tire.

"Fawkes," yelled Bobby as he ran to the car. He found Darien on the ground, unconscious, blood leaking out of his back.

He kneeled down and lifted up Darien's shirt, examining the wound on his back. It didn't look too serious, but it was bleeding heavily. Bobby took his jacket off and pressed it against the wound, trying to stop the bleeding.

He heard Darien moan slightly. "Fawkesy, come on, buddy, wake up," said Bobby. He rolled Darien over and noticed a bruise on his forehead. "Open your eyes, pal," he said.

Darien moaned again and slowly opened his eyes. He saw the blurry image of Bobby standing over him. "What the hell happened this time?" he asked in a weak voice.

Bobby shook his head. "I don't know, why don't you tell me?" said Bobby as he grabbed Darien by the arms and lifted him off the ground. 

Darien tried to shake the cobwebs from his mind. "It was two guys. I felt this pain in my back and then I turned around and they hit me with a gun or something," said Darien weakly.

Bobby put Darien's arm around his shoulder and walked him to the van. "Anyone we know?" asked Bobby as he put Darien in the van.

Darien shrugged. "One of them I've seen before, he works for Chrysalis. I don't know about the other guy."

"Did they say anything to you?" asked Bobby as he started the van.

"No," said Darien with a small groan as he looked down at the knife wound. He then looked over at Bobby with a look of confusion on his face. "How did you find me, anyway?"

"I've been checking out all your little haunts. You're very easy to track down,

my friend. You need to start varying your routine. You make it too easy for wackos to come out and stick you with knives," said Bobby with seriousness in his tone.

"Yeah, well, I'll take it under advisement," said Darien sarcastically.

A half-hour later, Darien had 10 stitches in his back and an icepack on his forehead. Kara sent him home to get some sleep after making sure he didn't have a concussion. Bobby took Darien to his apartment and put him in bed. Then he headed back to the Agency to get a little proof about his hunch.

Bobby sat on the floor of the Agency Archives, pouring over the files on Claire's death. He scanned through the police reports and looked through the pictures. There was something he was missing and he knew it. He read through the reports again, noting specific details. Then he looked at the pictures again. His heart started beating wildly when he found what he was looking for. He got off the floor and walked quickly out of the room.

"Sir, if you could just sign this," 

"Shut up, Eberts, I don't have time to be signing forms on validated parking," said the Official angrily.

Eberts pouted sadly. His look turned to surprise when Bobby burst through the door.

"Chief, you're not going to believe this," said Bobby as he threw Claire's files on the Officials desk. "I cannot believe I didn't see it before," muttered Bobby in a manic tone to himself.

The Official eyed Bobby curiously. "What this about Hobbes?"

Bobby stepped next to the Official and opened Claire's file. "Okay, read the police report. The report says that the bomb was attached to the front door, right?"

The Official nodded.

"So when she opened it, the whole house blew. Okay, now look at this," said Bobby as he took out a picture of Claire's dead body. "Look where her body is. It's inside the house. Now call me crazy, but if she opened the door and the bomb blew up, don't you think it would have blown her into the street? I mean, why would her body be laying inside the house?"

The Official gave him a doubting look. 

Bobby saw it. "Just hear me out, okay chief. Arnie said something the other day when we visited him, something about not killing the Keeper because she was too valuable. Suddenly, that's starting to make a lot of sense. I mean, the Keep, she knows all about the quicksilver gland and she knows a hell of a lot about a million other things. Why would someone just kill her? It just doesn't add up," said Bobby as he walked to a chair in front of the Official's desk and sat down. 

"Plus, here's another tidbit. The guys who jumped Fawkes this afternoon, one of them Fawkes remembered from Chrysalis. Why would they just attack him? We've been real careful about investigating them, they had no idea we've been checking them out," said Bobby anxiously.

The Official cleared his throat. "Did Fawkes put you up to this?"

Bobby shook his head. "No sir, he doesn't know anything about this. I was going to tell him, but then I decided I didn't want to get his hopes up in case I was wrong," said Bobby as he leaned forward in his seat. "Look, how well did you know this coroner that matched Claire's dental records."

The Official shrugged. "He's someone I've used in the past. He's always good and accurate."

"Well what if he wasn't so accurate this time," said Bobby shadily.

Bobby looked over at Eberts who was staring at him incredulously. "What are you staring at Eberts? Jealous that I cracked the case and not you," said Bobby sarcastically.

The Official looked at Bobby for a few moments. "Are you suggesting what I think your suggesting?"

"You're damn right. We dig up her body and compare the dental records using someone we know isn't dirty. What's it gonna hurt, chief," said Bobby.

The Official nodded slowly. "All right, we'll do it. But Hobbes, if your wrong about this, then your paying for all the expenses," said the Official gruffly.

"With pleasure," said Bobby.

Four hours later the Official, Bobby and Eberts sat in uncomfortable chairs at a morgue in Lakeview. They had Claire's body exhumed and brought it to the neutral city of Lakeview, where they were sure the coroner was on the level.

Bobby stared at his watch, waiting in anticipation. He knew he was right, he could just feel it in his gut.

The trio looked up eagerly when the door opened revealing the coroner. Bobby hopped up excitedly to his feet. "Well?"

The coroner shook his head. "It's not a match. That body is not Claire Spencer."

Bobby practically jumped in the air. The Official sat back down heavily in his chair, in shock. Eberts just stood there quietly, grinning. 

"So she's not dead," said the Official quietly to himself. He looked up at Bobby. "Find Fawkes, tell him. Then get your butts back to the Agency and we are going to track her down," said the Official firmly.

Bobby smiled. "Yes, sir."

The loud knocking on his door jolted Darien out a deep sleep, making him fall to the floor with a yelp. 

"Fawkes, open the damn door," he heard Bobby yell.

Darien looked at the clock. Eight o' clock at night. He had slept the whole day away. Darien stumbled towards the door, still sore from his encounter in the afternoon. He opened the door with irritation. "What the hell do you want, Hobbes? You just woke me up from some much needed beauty rest," said Darien in a sleepy tone.

Bobby pushed Darien into the apartment. "Sit down, Fawkes, you're not going to believe this," said Bobby excitedly.

Darien looked at him with curiosity and sat down. He had never seen Bobby so excited in all his life. "Been taking the meds, Bobby?" asked Darien.

Bobby ignored him. He walked to Darien and put his hands on his shoulders. "Brace yourself, my friend, for what I'm about to tell you."

Darien looked at him with anticipation. "What?" he said.

"Claire is alive," said Bobby with a huge smile.

"What?" said Darien with confusion.

"She's alive partner, she's alive," repeated Bobby.

Darien shook his head. "No, no don't tell me that. She's dead. Don't get my hopes up, Bobby. I went through that with Kev and I'm not doing it again," said Darien with puppy dog eyes.

"I got proof, D. I went through her file and found some inconsistencies. Then I went to the Official, explained it to him and we exhumed her body," said Bobby.

"You exhumed her body? Why the hell did you do that?" asked Darien, hurt evident in his voice.

"To compare dental records. And guess what, they didn't match. The body under Claire's tombstone isn't Claire, my friend," said Bobby matter of factly.

Darien sat in stunned silence, taking short gasping breaths. He finally looked over at Bobby. "So she's alive, she's really alive."

Bobby put a reassuring hand on Darien's shoulder. "I wouldn't do this to you if I wasn't sure, Fawkes," said Bobby.

Darien stood up, a huge smile on his face. "Well what the hell are we waiting for, let's find her," said Darien.

Darien quickly got dressed and the duo got in Bobby's van, heading to the Agency to start searching for their beloved Keeper.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Dr

Dr. Jonathan Graver sat in front of his new entertainment center, trying to figure out exactly how to hook it up. The entertainment center was one of the many things purchased with the $50,000 given to him by Chrysalis for "mixing up" some dental records. Easiest money he had ever made. But of course every time he thought of Chrysalis, a chill went down his spine.

He was about to hook his VCR to the television when his door burst open.

"Hey, buddy," said Darien as he and Bobby walked into the room.

Jonathan recognized both of them as employees of Charlie from the Agency. He instantly stood up, heart racing.

"Sit," said Bobby as he waved his gun towards a couch.

Jonathan did as he was told. "What do you want?" he asked in a panic.

Darien sat down in a chair across from Jonathan and leaned in towards him. "Well, that's real simple. We wanna know where Claire Spencer is," said Darien.

"Claire Spencer?" said Jonathan innocently.

"Don't play dumb, doc," said Darien with irritation. "Claire Spencer, the person who's dental records you mixed up with a dead woman."

Jonathan only stared back, trying to keep calm.

"Okay, okay, so you're not gonna talk. Tough guy, huh?" said Darien as he looked over at Bobby. "Kill him."

Bobby nodded. "Sure thing, Fawkesy," said Bobby as he walked to Jonathan and put the gun to his head.

Jonathan panicked, putting his hands up in the air. "Please, please, I don't want to die," he yelled.

"Where is she?" asked Darien. "We know Chrysalis paid you off. We got bank records of money going from a Chrysalis front account into your account."

"I don't know," said Jonathan.

Darien leaned farther forward, searching Jonathan's eyes. "You do know, don't you? You're just afraid to say it. Well, my friend, I wouldn't be worried about Chrysalis coming after you because by this time tomorrow they won't exist."

Jonathan hesitated. Darien looked at Bobby. Bobby pushed his gun firmly against Jonathan's head.

"Ahh, okay, okay," screamed Jonathan. "When they first approached me, I was scared and didn't want to do it. So one day they jumped me after work and took me to this huge lab out in the desert. The lab was filled with all kinds of weapons and torture devices. They said they would use them on me if I didn't help them," said Jonathan, tears streaming down his face.

"Where in the desert?" asked Darien urgently.

"About 50 miles east of here. It's the only thing out there," sniffled Jonathan.

Darien looked at Bobby, eyes wide. " Out of the way, isolated, filled with equipment, nice. Perfect place to keep Claire," said Darien with hope shining in his eyes for the first time in a week.

Jonathan continued to sniffle in the chair. Bobby patted him on the back. "You did good, my friend," he said.

Bobby took out his handcuffs and threw them to Darien. 

Darien gently cuffed Jonathan. "Don't worry, baby. We'll tell the judge you cooperated and he'll go easy on you," said Darien.

Bobby pulled out his cell phone and dialed up the Official. "Yeah chief, we got it," said Bobby. "Okay, we'll be right there."

Bobby hung up the phone and looked at Darien. "Let's go," he said as he helped Darien drag Jonathan out the door, leaving the brand new entertainment center deserted on the floor.

Darien stared out the window of Bobby's van, seeing nothing but the barren landscape of the desert under the moonlight.

His heart was jumping nervously in his chest and he was shaking. He wanted to see Claire so bad. He needed to hold her in his arms. Darien just hoped they weren't too late.

He looked in the side mirror and saw four black Agency vans behind them. The Agency was going to raid the lab in the desert and take down Chrysalis. Darien was going to personally arrest or kill Stark, whichever turned out to be necessary.

The vans stopped about two miles from the Chrysalis lab, the agents not wanting to get any closer and tip Chrysalis off to their impending arrival.

All the agents got out of their vans and crowded around the Official. "Okay people, listen up. We're sending Fawkes in under the radar along with Hobbes. Their going to do a little surveillance and then radio when there ready for us," said the Official as he looked around at his agents. "We walk the rest of the way and wait about a half a mile away. When they give us the signal, go," said the Official firmly.

The agents started the 20 minute walk to their position. When they got there, they all started loading up their weapons.

The Official stepped towards Darien and Bobby, who were busy loading their own guns. "Good luck, you two," said the Official.

Alex stepped up behind the trio and handed Darien and Bobby earpieces and mikes. "Take em' down guys," she said with a smile.

"Thanks Monroe," said Bobby.

Darien and Bobby looked at one another nervously. "You ready for this partner?" said Darien.

Bobby nodded and smiled. "You're damn straight I am, my friend," said Bobby as he extended his hand. 

The partners slapped hands and started walking quickly towards the lab. When they were about 200 hundred feet away, Bobby felt a cold substance coating his body. He shivered slightly. 

"Wuss," he heard Darien say softly.

They crept up, noticing guards in small booths located in front of the lab. They made their way around the back and went in through a back door. 

They were met with hallways and corridors, all looking pretty much the same.

"Okay, we got two guard posts in the front, filled with 2 guys each, armed with automatic weapons, said Bobby softly into his mike.

The partners started to walk down a long hallway. Each room on the sides of the hallway appeared to be some kind of lab. Darien opened up the doors to one of the labs and stepped inside. Alarms instantly started to go off. "Aw crap," said Darien.

Bobby pulled Darien out of the room and the two started running down the hall. Men in suits, armed with guns and equipped with thermal, started to fill up the hallway.

"Now, go now!" yelled Bobby into his mike.

He pushed Darien down another hall. The armed men started shooting at them. Bobby and Darien turned around and shot back at them, taking out five guys. The partners continued running through the halls, stopping every few seconds and ducking into a room to avoid gunfire.

They came to a fork in the hallway. Bobby pointed to the left. "Split up, partner," he said as he headed to the right, the quicksilver flaking from his body.

Darien ran rapidly down the hall with armed men on his trail. He could feel bullets whizzing by him. The men almost caught up with him, but Darien dived into a lab and returned fire, taking care of the guys after him.

He could hear the sounds of explosions and gunfire all over the building. The Agency must be in, he thought. Now all he had to do was find Claire.

Claire looked around nervously at the walls of her room, a picture of Darien bleeding and unconscious, lying on the bed beside her. She could hear the gunshots and explosions coming from outside. 

She walked to the door, picking up the chair along her way. This was her chance to get out of here.

The door slid open, but nobody entered. "Claire," she heard someone say softly.

Claire dropped the chair to the ground, as Darien shed quicksilver from his body.

"Claire," he said again, breathlessly. He stared at her, tears falling down his cheeks. He was afraid to touch her, afraid she might not be real.

Claire didn't have such a problem. She ran to him and practically jumped on top of him, kissing him passionately, tears falling down her own face. "They showed me a picture of you lying unconscious on the ground, I thought they really hurt you," she sobbed in between kisses.

"Yeah, well I thought you were dead," he said breathlessly. He pulled away from her and took her face in his hands. "Don't you ever do that to me again, okay," he said.

Claire smiled. "Promise. I love you so much," she said as she pulled him close and hugged him.

"I love you too," he said.

"Well isn't that sweet," said Stark, who had entered the room without them realizing. A gun was pointed at Claire. Darien instantly pointed his own gun at Stark. "Don't even try it. Drop it," said Stark firmly.

Darien dropped it and pulled Claire close to him.

"You think you won today, Darien? You didn't win. We got people all over the U.S. and the rest of the world. This is but a tiny piece of the pie," said Stark.

"Yeah, well it seems like it's a pretty important piece," said Darien sarcastically.

Stark moved his gun from Claire to Darien. "I should have done this a long time ago," said Stark as he pulled the trigger.

"No!" cried Claire as she jumped in front of Darien.

"Claire!" yelled Darien.

Claire fell to the floor, blood leaking from her chest.

"Claire," said Darien in a panic as he sat down on the floor and picked her up, cradling her unconscious body in his arms.

"This is touching," said Stark as he stepped close to Darien. He put the gun to his head. Darien closed his eyes and waited for it to be over. He heard a gun shot and a loud crash. He opened his eyes and saw Stark lying on the ground, eyes open, blood flowing from his head. Bobby stood over him, his gun still smoking.

Darien looked up at him in shock. "Thanks," he said softly. He turned his attention back to Claire. He felt her neck for a pulse. He breathed a sigh of relief when he found one. "We got to get her out of here, Bobby," said Darien as he gently picked Claire up and ran out of the room, with Bobby following close behind.

A Day Later

Claire was trying to figure out where she was. It didn't sound like her room at the lab. She opened her eyes slowly, taking in her surroundings. A hospital room. She saw she was hooked up to various machines, the beeps annoying her to no end.

She looked down at her lap and saw a familiar head of hair. Darien had pulled a chair up to her bed and had fallen asleep with his head laying next to her on the bed so he wouldn't hurt her. His left arm was draped across her middle and his right hand was locked onto hers.

Claire smiled, taking her left hand and stroking his hair gently. He jumped awake. "Are you okay?" he asked, panic in his eyes.

She almost laughed when she saw his face. Lines from the bed sheets had etched a design on his cheek and a line of crusted drool extended from his mouth. She took his hand and rubbed it. "I'm fine," she said softly. 

He visibly relaxed when she said that. He reached out and gently caressed her cheek. He was instantly met with a smile.

He stood up and kissed her on the forehead. "I'll be right back, Keepie," he said slyly.

Claire looked at him oddly. "What tricks are you hiding in your slippery little sleeves, Darien."

He grinned and shrugged mysteriously. "You'll see," he said as he walked out the door.

Darien walked out of her room and went down to the men's room at the end of the hall. He went in and checked himself out in the mirror. He noticed the drool line and wiped it off with his hand. Then he took some water from the faucet and poured it over his face with his hands. He took a deep breath and looked at himself again. Not bad, but not great either. Oh well, it would have to do. "You're the man, D. You can do this," he said to himself nervously.

He reached down and tapped his pocket, feeling the ring box. After another deep breath, he left the men's room and walked back into Claire's room.

She eyed him. "What are you doing?" she asked.

He flipped off the light and reached under the bed, pulling out a basket. He took out two candles and lit them with a match. Then he pulled out a rose and walked over to her.

He kneeled down next to her bed, setting the rose across her chest and took her hand. "I love you, so much Claire. When I thought you were dead, I didn't have anything. You're my life, Keepie," said Darien as he reached into his pocket, pulled out the ring box and opened it. "So I was kind of wondering if you would marry me?" he said softly, tears glistening in his eyes. 

Claire's face lit up and a huge tearful smiled appeared on her face. "Yes, I would love to marry you, Darien Fawkes," she said.

Darien smiled. "Oh good, I guess that means I don't have to return this ring to the person I stole it from," he said teasingly. He took the ring out of the box and slipped it on her finger.

Claire looked down at it and smiled. Darien leaned in and they kissed tenderly. After a good five minutes, he pulled away and picked two champagne glasses out of the basket, along with a bottle of apple cider. He poured them each a glass and handed one to her. "I figured, what with all the medications you're on, that you probably shouldn't have alcohol at this point," he said with a smile. He looked at her awkwardly. "I'm sorry if this isn't the way you pictured getting engaged. I had it all planned out the night you...died," he said slowly. "I would have waited 'til you were out of here, but I didn't want the opportunity to slip by me again," he said, looking her in the eyes.

Claire set down her glass and gently took his hands and pulled him down so his face was inches away from hers. "It was better than anything I could have ever dreamed," she said, a tear falling down her cheek.

He took his finger and brushed the tear away. Then he set down his own glass and crawled into bed next to her, wrapping his arms around her, wanting to hold her forever.

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

Kara parked her car next to the Agency and walked in, saying hello to the guards as she did

Devil's Silver #6 Wicked Game Part 7 (final)

By Carol M.

Author's Note: And so it comes to an end. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed writing this story. Thanks to everyone for the feedback. Enjoy the last part!

Kara parked her car next to the Agency and walked in, saying hello to the guards as she did. The halls of the Agency were quiet, being that most of the agent's were busy wrapping up loose ends with Chrysalis. No one would even know she was there. Not that they had noticed her much anyway with everything that had been going on.

She took the elevator down to the Keep and got out her key, opening the Keep door. She took out another key and opened the locked drawer where she had put Darien's file. She opened the drawer, took out the file and took out the disk. She produced another disk from her purse and switched the disks, putting the disk from the file into her purse. She put the file back in the drawer and locked it. Then she left the Keep and a few minutes later, she left the Agency.

The drive to the prison took only about 20 minutes. She got out of her car and walked into the prison, talking to a guard at the desk. He produced the visitor's sign in sheet. For the first time in weeks, she signed her real name.

A guard led her into the visitation room and she waited, heart racing. Five minutes later, Arnaud was brought into the room.

"Ten minutes," said the guard.

As soon as the guard left, she jumped out of her chair and hugged Arnaud. "Oh, Arnie, I've missed you so much," she said as she kissed him.

Arnaud pulled back and took her face in his hands. "Oh Elizabeth, I miss you're beautiful face darling," he said. "The plastic surgeon did a remarkable job. You look just like the late Miss Vore."

Elizabeth stepped towards the table and reached into her purse, pulling out the disk. "It worked Arnie. Everything we need in order to restore you to your visible self," she said.

"Ah yes, the plan, it worked rather well didn't it? I got the information I needed about the gland and I got Fawkes to eliminate Stark and the heart of his pesky little terrorist organization. Poor Stark, fool never saw it coming," said Arnaud with a smile. "Do you think anyone figured out who you were in the Agency?" 

Elizabeth shook her head. "Nope, everything was fine. Even the Official was convinced I was Kara Vore."

"Good, good," said Arnaud. "Everything went just as planned. You can quietly hand in your resignation now that Ms. Spencer is back and they will be none the wiser."

Elizabeth nodded. "You're are brilliant, honey. Getting yourself arrested on purpose so it would draw the attention away from you and keep my cover safe. But now that's over, how are we going to get you out of here?" asked Elizabeth as she kissed Arnaud again.

"Oh my darling, don't worry about such inconveniences. It will not be a problem," he said dramatically. He picked up the disk and held it in the air. "Now that I have this, I have everything. I will restore my own visibility and then we can start producing glands of our own. People will be lining up around the corner. We will be rich my darling."

Arnaud hugged Elizabeth tightly, congratulating himself for a second time that week for a job well done.

Claire awoke from her nap and smiled, not even feeling the pain in her chest. She glanced down at her hand, admiring her ring. Darien had great taste.

She looked into the corner of the room, where Darien had fallen asleep in a chair, his long legs squished into an impossible position. She giggled slightly at the sight.

"Claire," someone said.

She looked towards the door and saw Bobby standing there with a teddy bear. Claire smiled wide. "Bobby, come in," she whispered, pointing at Darien.

Bobby looked at Darien's sleeping form. It was the first time he had seen peace on his partner's face in days. 

Bobby stepped to Claire, handing her the teddy bear and kissed her lightly on the cheek. "I'm glad you're back, Keep. I missed you," he said softly.

"Thank you, Bobby, I'm glad to be back," she said, cradling the bear in her hands held out her hand and showed him her ring.

Bobby smiled widely. "So he did it. Good for him," he said.

Claire looked at Bobby with surprise. "You knew about this?" she asked.

Bobby puffed out his chest. "Hey, who do you think taught Fawkes all his moves. You didn't think he came up with that on his own, did you?" he said jokingly.

Claire smiled and shook her head. "Of course not."

"Claire, now that you're engaged, that doesn't mean that we can't play doctor together anymore, does it?" asked Bobby with a look of mock sadness on his face.

"I won't tell Darien, if you won't," she whispered, laughing.

He smiled and then looked at her with a serious expression. 

"What is it Bobby?" she said with concern.

He shook his head. "Nothing, I'm just glad you're okay," he said, a glimmer of tears appearing in his eyes. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. "I found this on top of your tombstone after we exhumed your body," said Bobby.

"Exhumed my body?" said Claire, confused.

"Never mind, never mind, it's not important," said Bobby as he handed her the note. "Anyway, Fawkes left this on your grave for you. I didn't read it, I just took a quick peak to see what it was. I think he would want you to read it. Just don't ever tell him I gave it to you, okay?" said Bobby softly.

Claire nodded. "Thanks Bobby," she said as she held out her hands for a hug. He leaned down and hugged her gently. "I'll let you two alone now. I just wanted to say hi and make sure you were okay," said Bobby.

"Thanks for the bear Bobby and thanks for everything else," said Claire.

Bobby waved her off. "Not a problem, a pleasure in fact. Bobby Hobbes doesn't bail on his partner or his partner's fiancée," he said with a smile.

"I'll see you later, Claire," said Bobby as he started to leave. He looked over at Fawkes and then looked at Claire's bed, noticing a cover pushed down to her feet. "You gonna use this?" he asked.

Claire shook her head. Bobby picked up the blanket and draped it over Darien. "Take it easy, partner," said Bobby. He waved at Claire and walked out the door.

Claire looked at the paper in her hand curiously. She slowly unfolded it and realized it was a letter. She saw smudge marks all over it. Must have rained, she thought. She sunk back in her pillow and began to read.

_Dear Claire,_

As The Beatles once sang, "All you need is love." Yeah, well, they were right. The past six months of my life have been the happiest I can remember. All I really need is your love to get me through the day.

I have to apologize for something. I read your diary. Come on, you knew I would read it eventually didn't you? I mean I used to be a thief after all. Anyway, it moved me. It made me miss you like crazy. It made me want to tell you what you mean to me, even though I realized I would never be able to.

I love you Claire. There are no words to express how much. I remember the first time we met. Me standing there in front of the refrigerator in the Keep, you standing there all cool with your tranq gun. At the time I thought, who is this foxy chick and why the hell is she shooting at me. Come on, Claire, you were a little icy at first.

But you grew on me. You hid behind your doctor shell, trying to never cross the doctor patient relationship. So professional and so cool. You're always in control, much more then I ever will be. I admire you for that.

You said all I did those first months was bitch about the gland. Well you're right, I did. But I have realized something. If it wasn't for the gland, we would've never met. Somehow, I think the gland, the QSM, I think it was all worth it, because I got you.

I was so lucky, Claire. I had the perfect girl and now I've lost her. I don't know how I will make it without you. I guess now all I have left is Bobby. He's fun, but kissing him just isn't the same as kissing you.

Claire, you make me shiver with anticipation every time you're in the room. The scent of your hair, the curve of your neck, the delicateness of your skin. It all drives me wild. You drive me wild. Making love to you is a lesson in control and pure happiness. I could never ask for more.

But not only do you have beauty, you have brains. You're so smart, but you never show it off. You use your gift well, trying to help people. You are a treasure to all of those around you, Keep.

Anyway, now that you're gone, I'm left with regret. Regret about not being able to make you my wife, regret in not being able to show you just how much I love you, regret that we can't have some stupid banter about the science of earthworms. I miss you so much and I will never be able to replace you. Just know, wherever you are, that I love you and I always will.

Love your lab rat,

Darien

P.S. Bobby loves you too.

Claire set the letter down, tears streaming from her face. She looked at Darien and blew him a kiss. She glanced down at her engagement ring and smiled, picturing her wedding day beside her prince charming, Darien Fawkes.

That's All Folks!


End file.
